03 Oct Huffington Post- Gina Rivera Go Glam Or Ghoulish
If you haven’t noticed, Halloween falls on a Friday this year so you simply must go to a party and nothing short of a fantastic costume with fabulous hair will suffice.
If you can still get an appointment with your hair stylist, do it. They can help you nail a look and lots of stylists love Halloween so just getting your hair done will be a party. Worth noting is that not every hairstyle for Halloween involves an outrageous look and I’ve got some examples at the end of this column. You could easily get some of these done days before Halloween and then tell everyone where you’ll be partying that night.
Also, many of us reach for a wig, and there are lots of them in virtually any style to make that look. If you’ve got a pixie and you want to go as Rapunzel … yeah, you’ll need a wig. If you’re looking for a big bushy mane and your hair is naturally thin, you’ll need a wig or extensions.
There are lots of styles, though, you can achieve with your natural hair, a few techniques and ample quantities of hair product. To get the really elaborate looks and colors, you almost certainly need professional help. Here is a smattering of ideas to get your imagination in gear:
Going big or ghoulish? You’ll tease, tease and tease some more. Wash your hair then work with a brush and blowdryer. Add a little mousse or hairspray while your hair is still damp to give the strands some texture and traction. Then start back-combing near the scalp. This will add lots of volume. You can leave top layers really neat and uniform but if you want that sexy just-dead look, shape them with a curling or crimping iron, then work with a blow dryer, use hair wax or pomade to leave it really slick and shiny, scrunch the curls to give it a messy look.
If you’ve got enough hair, brush and blow it all skyward with lots of maximum-hold hairspray for Bride of Frankenstein. Going punk? Use a coarse comb (and more pomade) to create a sharp, tall fohawk. Finish with hairspray because, of course, you’ll be dancing.
But wait … did you forget color? There are some fantastic temporary hair colors and color sprays. Struck by lightning? Take it bright silver and electric blue. Go green for mutant ivy.
Dressing for Halloween doesn’t always mean that your hair is outrageous. Classic movie characters inspire awesome costumes with beautiful hairstyles: Audrey Hepburn’s updo for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” is nearly popular again, or maybe it never went out of style. Sarah Hyland of “Modern Family” wore a similar high bun with soft wisps around the face for the Emmys … Hey, go to that Halloween party as Sarah Hyland!
Another timeless look is Marilyn Monroe’s wavy blonde bob. Make it a group costume with Marilyns from different movies. Hand out prizes for anyone who guesses them all.
Got short hair? Make it a pixie and go as Miley Cyrus or Halle Berry. For Miley Cyrus you can easily brush it up with a little color spray for one of her fohawks. Lady Gaga has yet another entirely-new look to promote her new album, “Cheek to Cheek,” with Tony Bennett.
Most of these latter looks involve great styles and lots of recognizable glam without requiring industrial quantities of hair product. Have fun!